Three ice cream producers and Publix grocery stores are recalling ice cream that was made with cookie dough produced by a third party vendor, and now a chocolate chip bar by Nutrisystem is being recalled. That vendor, Aspen Hills, recalled the cookie dough because it may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria in fall 2016. We are collecting the recalls here as they may continue and the recalls may expand over the coming weeks and months.
Aspen Hills allegedly found some "food safety issues" at their plant, even though none of the pathogenic bacteria was found in their products or in the facility. That prompted the recall "out of an abundance of caution." The cookie dough was sent to twenty-seven manufacturers that bought the product.
There is zero tolerance for the … [Read more...]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has ended its investigation into the Blue Bell Listeria outbreak. Since its last update in early May, the agency added no new cases ending its probe of food safety problems at the nation's third-largest ice cream maker with 10 cases reported from four states and three fatalities.
Several strains of Listeria were involved. Most of the confirmed cases-Arizona (1), Kansas (5), Oklahoma (1), and Texas (3); were sickened by strains identical to those found in ice cream made at the company's plants in Brenham, Texas and Broken Arrow, Okla. The three fatalities were in Kansas.
Using PulseNet, a national database that allows public health agencies to share pathogen "fingerprints," health officials retrospectively identified illnesses that … [Read more...]

After addressing food safety violations that likely contributed to a Listeria recall, Jeni's ice cream shops reopen tonight. On April 23, the company issued a voluntary recall of all of its products after Listeria was found in a pint of dark chocolate ice cream in mid-April.
No illnesses had been associated with Jeni's products, but the company issued the recall and stopped production while it tried to isolate the source of the problem and correct it.
In response to a Freedom of Information request by the Associated Press, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday released its report from its April 30 inspection of the company's manufacturing facility in Columbus. The kicthen lacked proper space and food safety controls and some employees did not follow food safety … [Read more...]

After its ice cream was linked to a deadly Listeria outbreak, Blue Bell Creameries has agreed to new food safety rules set by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). The company must take all of the steps outlined in the agreement before it can begin selling ice cream again Bell Bell's production facilities were temporarily closed after Listeria monocytogenes in its ice cream products.
According to the terms of the agreement, Blue Bell has agreed to: Retain an independent sanitation and/or microbiology expert who can help the company assure that the plant and the equipment are properly prepared, maintained and operated to safely produce products that do not contain Listeria monocytogenes. Retain all test results and make them available to DSHS upon request. Notify DSHS … [Read more...]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its investigation into the multistate outbreak of listeriosis linked to Blue Bell Creameries ice cream products. Ten people from four states have been sickened so far. Three people have died, and all ten people have been hospitalized.
The CDC has produced an infographic about the outbreak, which traces the illnesses and the facilities where products that made people sick were made. Listeria was found in Blue Bell ice cream products and in the Oklahoma and Texas facilities where they were made.
Blue Bell recalled all of its products on the market made at all facilities on April 20, 2015. That recall includes all of its ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet, and frozen snacks, because they may be contaminated with Listeria … [Read more...]

Health inspectors found live crickets, mildew and other food safety violations at Blue Bell's Brenham Texas plant before the Listeria outbreak, according to records obtained by NBC5. The records show that although there were dozens of violations in the four years since the Listeria problem at the plant has been ongoing, no formal warnings or fines were issued, according to the station's report. NBC 5 used the Texas open records law to get copies of inspection reports from January 1, 2011 to April 15, 2015.
Blue Bell ice cream made at plants in Texas and Oklahoma has been linked to 10 illnesses and three deaths. Five people were sickened while they were being treated at a Kansas hospital and three illnesses occurred in patients at three different Texas hospitals. One person from Arizona … [Read more...]

The Listeria outbreak linked to Blue Bell ice cream has spread to four states, sickening 10 people and killing three. In addition to Kansas and Texas, illnesses have now been reported from Oklahoma and Arizona.
Blue Bell has recalled all of its products currently on the market. Consumers who have Blue Bell ice cream in their freezers should not eat it as it may be contaminated with Listeria.
So far, all 10 of the people identified as case patients in this outbreak contracted Listeria infections from ice cream they were served while hospitalized for unrelated illnesses. The newly reported cases occurred in January 2010 and March 2012.
People at high risk for infection from Listeria include pregnant women, newborns, small children, seniors and those with weakened immune systems. … [Read more...]

The most recent government findings in the Listeria food poisoning outbreak associated with Blue Bell ice cream have placed Texas in an even greater spotlight than before. Already recognized as the home state of the 108-year-old Blue Bell Creameries Co., Texas has now been confirmed by federal health investigators as the location of a second cluster of illnesses in the outbreak.
Based on reports from the FDA, CDC and the Texas Department of State Health Services, three Texas hospital patients became ill with listeriosis over a period of time from 2011-2014. Officials who have studied the molecular fingerprints of Listeria found in Blue Bell ice cream say it matches the strains in the Texas hospital patients. None of the agencies would provide details about the Texas case patients, but … [Read more...]

After a deadly Listeria outbreak at Via Christi hospital in Wichita was linked to Blue Bell ice cream made in Texas, new tests have found the pathogen in ice cream made at the company's plant in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.
The potentially contaminated products distributed to hospitals and other other institutions in 23 states include three flavors of 3 ounce ice cream cups: chocolate, vanilla and strawberry. The recalled chocolate cups have the SKU number 453, Strawberry SKU 452 and Vanilla SKU451. They were distributed in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Wyoming.
These … [Read more...]